John Chandos

John Chandos (died 31 December 1369) was a knight of the Kingdom of England who held no title of nobility at his birth. Chandos served in the Hundred Years War as an accomplice of Edward the Black Prince and fought at the Battle of Crecy in 1346, the Battle of Poitiers in 1351, and the Battle of Auray in 1364. He was killed in the battle of Lussac-les-Chateaux in Poitou, and since he was a member of the Knights Templar, he was secretly murdered by the Assassins Order, as he was a companion of the Black Prince (he held a Piece of Eden, the Knights of the Garter cross).

Biography
Chandos was born in Derbyshire to a family that was of Norman lineage. He trained himself in the arts of war and distinguished himself as a young knight; while he was not a nobleman, he was instead a chivalrous gentleman. Chandos was respected by his peers and even the royal family adored him, and he became a friend of Edward the Black Prince.

In 1337 he conspired with the Knights Templar to start the Hundred Years War, sending an offensive letter to the King of France that would begin a costly and lengthy war. Chandos was sent to France with the young Black Prince in 1346 and fought at the Battle of Crecy, where the Assassins Order recruit Louis de Grandpre noticed him, and attempted to kill him by shooting an arrow into his eye. It merely wounded him, and Chandos led the attack that routed the French army.

Chandos continued to play a role in the war, and after the King of France's death, he defeated the French at the Battle of Poitiers and went on to win again at the Battle of Auray in 1364. In the late 1360s Chandos, disagreeing with the peace treaty reached with France, continued to attack the French despite the ceasefire. The Assassins Order, collaborating with the French, agreed to save the peace.

Death
Chandos led skirmishers into Poitou in central France in an attempt to continue the war so that he could take over France in revenge for their massacre of Templars in 1307. Grandpre headed into the Lussac-les-Chateaux, where he was armored and given a sword, and he led the French into battle. He fought his way to Chandos, who attempted to flee but his cape was stuck in the snow and he was trapped. Grandpre cut him across the chest with his sword, mortally wounding Chandos. He revealed that he was only trying to be a hero and that he just wanted to bring the Templars back to France. Grandpre told him that the bloody war was his brainchild, and that resuming it would be a breach of chivalry. Chandos told him that some things must come with great sacrifice, and died.